Does God Decide Who Goes to Heaven and Hell?
Have you ever heard it taught that God decides who goes to heaven and hell? Maybe you just assumed this is how it works. But this isn’t really the whole truth.
Hell was created for the devil and demons, not for people (Matthew 25:41). But tragically, people do go to hell when they die if they have rejected Jesus Christ.
God desires that everyone receive His gift of salvation and spend eternity in heaven.
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2: 3-4
God does not decide who goes to heaven and hell. Each individual person decides whether they receive Jesus and go to heaven or spend eternity in hell.
God is constantly pursuing humanity with his love and kindness. His desire is for you to receive what He has done through Jesus so that you can be restored to your original destiny of spending forever with Him in pure joy.
In fact, the Bible says that this is why He is so patient with His return, in order to give every person the chance to repent and believe on Jesus.
The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9
God’s will is for every single person to receive forgiveness of sins and be born again so that they can spend eternity with Him. God provided salvation as a gift through the crucifixion and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. But He won’t force His will upon people. He gives each person the free will to decide where they will spend eternity.
Believing that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to earth, was crucified and resurrected is the only way to be saved and go to heaven. Confessing Jesus as Lord means that you believe that Jesus was God manifested in the flesh.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6
For more about the reality of hell, read: 5 Things the Bible Says About Hell and Who Will Go There.
Who Can Go to Heaven?
It doesn’t matter how bad of a sinner someone is, God has made the way for every person to receive forgiveness and go to heaven. When Jesus died on the cross, He took the sin of the entire world. He took the punishment of death that every one of us deserved.
And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. 1 John 2:2
Those who teach that some are predestined to salvation while others are predestined to damnation are wrong. Salvation has been made available to every single person ever born.
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, Titus 2:11
Jesus took the punishment for every sin you have or ever will commit. Sin is worthy of death, so without the sacrifice of Jesus we would all deserve to go to hell. But thank God for the gift of eternal life.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
The sin spoken of in this verse is not individual acts of sin but rather the sin nature that every human is born with. When you receive salvation and become born again, you receive a new spirit that is created in righteousness.
and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. Ephesians 4:24
Being born again is the only way to avoid being held liable for all the wrongs committed as a result of the sinful nature. Once you receive salvation and become a new creation, you no longer have this sin nature and will therefore not receive this payment of death.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:17-18
God says that every single person who calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved and go to heaven, regardless of their past mistakes, or even future mistakes.
For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13
How Do You Go to Heaven?
Heaven is a gift to those who believe on Jesus Christ. You could never earn it or somehow deserve it. You must receive the gift of eternal life by faith in what Jesus has done. There is no other way.
that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9
Do you believe that Jesus Christ was God’s Son, came to the earth, was crucified for your sin and raised from the dead? If so, then confess that and receive salvation! Faith is that simple. Believe in your heart and confess with your mouth.
There is a popular teaching in the world that says people can get to Heaven through many different ways, but this is simply not true. This is a trick of the devil to keep people from being saved.
There is only one Name through which you can be saved from hell, and His Name is Jesus Christ.
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:12
For more about salvation, read:
Born Again Christian: What Does it Mean?
Salvation by Faith: Exactly What it Means
Salvation: Why You Can Never Earn It